Bent spark plug electrode
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 10,962
Likes: 29
From: Van Buren Arkansas
Wounded Warrior Escort '11
There are only a couple of possibilities for a bent electrode. Most are not good. As mentioned already, the wrong plug. Another more terrible thought is the rod bearing is letting go...badly...therefore the piston has contacted the plug. Something has managed to find its way into the combustion chamber yet too large to go out through the exhaust valve. Maybe a valve itself has come apart. Regardless, you need to do a compression test on that cylinder and all of them. Make sure you are using the correct plugs. Get and use a boroscope camera to look in there. Hope and pray you haven't damaged the engine.
Race Director
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 10,554
Likes: 33
From: Not on either liberal coast.
Hopefully, that's the cause and nothing worse! How many times has someone dropped a spark plug while doing the job and didn't bother to recheck the gap?
I've seen a handful come that way brand new in the wrapper as well. Those thin cardboard packages do little to protect the electrode.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor
Joe Kucinski
Picture would be nice
Instructor
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 112
Likes: 0
From: Wichita Falls Texas
When I was a kid my dads truck ingested a loose nut from the choke plate on the carb. Bent the number 1 plug, spit it out the exhaust, went for another 100k. This was due to someone not tightening a screw...anyone work on it lately?
